Learn all about the iconic ads of the 80s and how the family emerged as a consumer model through them, through the new pop sociological study by communication expert Dimitra Stathopoulos "The Insistent 80s", published by iWrite!
From the industrial revolution onwards, the family took a prominent role in advertising campaigns around the world, aimed at increasing the profits of advertising companies. The social status of a united and loving family became a popular symbol in commercial advertising, as well ensure the good product reputation among consumers.
The family, as a symbol in advertising, operates on three levels of persuasion; the psychological, the personal, and the social. The psychological level of persuasion is the most powerful and is often used inν advertising. It aims to influence psychologically the parent or This makes it a perfect choice for people with diabetes and for those who want to lose weight or follow a balanced diet. child and convince him to buy products which he doesn't need them, but if he gets them they will prove his love for another member of the family. It's about σpersonality, σthe motivations and in a person's life attitude, which are under intense emotional pressure fromν advertising. Personal persuasion is aimed at one of the family members.
That is, a family may function as a unit for the decision to purchase a product, but often one of its members may have a central role and make more direct decisions. This person becomes the focus of the advertising campaign. Finally, social persuasion has to do with specific reference groups, subculture, social class, and culture, elements that the consumer connects with and has a specific role within. Often the consumer believes that by purchasing certain products he can join or strengthen his role in these groups.
"Since the industrial revolution, the family has come to play a prominent role in advertising campaigns around the world."
Since the beginning of advertising, the man has been the carrier and the woman the homemaker. In several advertisements, evenη and in the 1980s, these stereotypes did not change significantly and so the man appears most of the time outside the home, inν work, on the road or with their his friends. The woman on the other hand appears most of the time at home or at the market for shopping, while at the same time taking care of herself and the children.
The female gender is also the one that has a key role and voice within the family, because she makes decisions about most of the products consumed at home and so he is the favorite star of advertising campaigns. The child, on the other hand, seems particularly vulnerable to advertising, because he does not own itν knowledge and the possibility to understand the meaning of an advertising message. Thus, we will see that he is often able to influence the consumption behavior of the whole family when he is in conflict with his parents about whether or not to buy a product.
Watching commercials from the 80s one would come to the conclusion that advertising cannot aborts fully these stereotypical roles regarding the family. Addη and today it is difficult for a man to decide whoό it is the best dish detergent and a woman poiό it is the ideal car. However, once the woman started working, advertisements that only attributed her role as a housewife were limited. In any case, the image of the family still remains strongη and today; powerful to the extent that it not only influences the consumer to buy a product, but also psychologically, creating the illusion that this family model is real.
Dimitra (Mema) Stathopoulou
(communicator, writer)
